Sensor device for high-resolution detection of target substances

Abstract

An optical sensor device which measures in a spatially resolving manner is disclosed. In order to devise such a sensor device with which a contacting measurement of the article to be measured can be carried out and which can be mass-produced, the sensor device is designed such that a transfer of the calibration onto individual sensor devices is possible with high accuracy. According to certain embodiments of the design of the sensor device and of the evaluation methods, interferences with the measurement of the amount of the target substance are minimized.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A spatially resolving optical sensor device, comprising:
 multiple radiation sources; 
 multiple radiation detectors for determining an amount of target substances in strongly scattering measuring objects, said multiple radiation sources being arranged at respective different predetermined distances to the multiple radiation detectors; 
 a radiation barrier configured to absorb and/or reflect radiation of at least one wavelength range, said radiation barrier separating the multiple radiation sources from the multiple radiation detectors so that the radiations generated by the multiple radiation sources first pass through the measuring object by a path length before reaching the multiple radiation detectors; and 
 an amplifier configured to amplify signals of the radiation detectors arranged at the different predetermined distances to the radiation sources and separated from the radiation sources by the radiation barrier so that similar signal amplitudes for all of the multiple radiation detectors result. 
 
     
     
       2. The sensor device of  claim 1 , wherein the radiation barrier is a substrate which caries components and/or is a housing that surrounds the multiple radiation sources and with this blocks a radiation conduction in the substrate and/or a signal conduction through the housing. 
     
     
       3. The sensor device of  claim 1 , wherein at least one of the radiation sources is configured and/or arranged so that the radiation passes from the radiation source through the measuring object up to a predetermined depth. 
     
     
       4. The sensor device of  claim 1 , wherein the distances of at least two of the multiple radiation detectors to the multiple radiation sources are selected so that a path length of the radiation in a target volume containing the target substance to be detected is maximized and measuring volumes for the different radiation detectors at least partially overlap. 
     
     
       5. The sensor device of  claim 1 , wherein the multiple radiation sources and multiple radiation detectors are arranged so as to result in a depth weighting which reduces an influence of interfering surface-proximate volumes or an influence of volumes located at a deeper depth than the target volume by a calculation of the signals at different distances. 
     
     
       6. The sensor device of  claim 1 , wherein at least one of the radiation sources is configured to enable irradiation with at least one wavelength or at least one wavelength range for each of an interfering variable, and wherein the multiple sensor devices are configured to detect more than one wavelength or wavelength range thereby increasing a sensitivity for the target substance and/or enabling a resolution of subclasses of the target substance. 
     
     
       7. The sensor device of  claim 1 , further comprising a temperature adjustment unit configured adapted to heat or cool the multiple radiation sources so that the temperature of the radiation sources is adjustable to a predetermined temperature value. 
     
     
       8. The sensor device of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor device is configured to perform a measuring series on measuring objects or on a substance mixtures that have similar properties compared to the measuring object with regard to the target substance and interfering variables in which the concentration of the target substance as reference value is varied in a targeted manner or is known by way of a different measuring method performed on different measuring objects and in which interferences can be varied and a calibration instruction can be determined which enables a prediction of the concentration of the target substance and with this the sensor device is available as a reference device with a reference calibration for a subsequent calibration transfer. 
     
     
       9. The sensor device of  claim 8 , wherein the sensor device has a calibration transfer means and/or can be connected with a calibration transfer means which is configured to transfer the reference calibration to further sensor device of similar construction, in that comparative measurements are preformed with the reference sensor devices and the sensor devices of same construction and a signal transfer function of the sensor devices of same construction can be adjusted when the deviation is excessive. 
     
     
       10. The sensor device of  claim 9 , wherein the multiple radiation sources comprise radiation sources with little water absorption and with this a higher penetration depth for the subcutis, and radiation sources with a higher water absorption and with this a lower penetration depth for the so as to enable an analysis of a water content by way of wavelength dependent differences of a penetration depth for the dermis and the subcutis separately. 
     
     
       11. The sensor device of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor device is configured to measure target substances in a skin of a user, said target substances being antioxidants and flavonoids or carotinoids, in particular beta carotin, lykopin, lutein, zeaxanthin or capsanthin, which are to be measured in the epidermis and dermis, or the target substances to be measured are fat, water and protein in animal tissue or meat products, which are either grown or are present after a processing process, or the target substance to be measured is melanin which is to be measured in the epidermis, or the target substance is bilirubin which is to be measured in the skin, or the target substance to be measured in the skin is water which is to be measured in the skin at different concentrations in the epidermis, dermis and the subcutis and in dependence on time is to be evaluated as liquid incorporation in case of heart inefficiency, for an evaluation of a sufficient liquid supply or for an evaluation of a kidney function. 
     
     
       12. The sensor device of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor device is configured to measure as target substances hemoglobin and/or oxygenated hemoglobin and/or to determine a hematocrit in the blood in an extra corporal blood circulation during dialysis or apheresis of blood or another situation in which a part of the blood is located in a tube system or a cuvette as measuring location. 
     
     
       13. The sensor device of  claim 1 , wherein the radiation sources and radiation detectors are closed toward the measuring object by a respective window and the radiation barrier arranged between the radiation sources and radiation detectors ends flush with or protrudes over the windows toward the measuring object. 
     
     
       14. The sensor device of  claim 13 , wherein the sensor device is configured to analyze target substances for different subclasses separately by selecting a respective radiation source for each of the different subclasses so that an average wavelength of the radiation source corresponds to an absorption maximum of a respective one of the different the subclasses of the target substances. 
     
     
       15. The sensor device of  claim 13 , wherein the sensor device is configured to determine a predictive value of the target substance from the measurement of the target substance, and wherein the sensor device has a communication interface which is connected or connectable with an output device and the communication interface is configured to transfer the predictive value of the target substance to the output device. 
     
     
       16. A spatially resolving optical sensor device, comprising:
 multiple radiation sources; 
 multiple radiation detectors for determining an amount of target substances in strongly scattering measuring objects, said multiple radiation sources being arranged at respective different predetermined distances to the multiple radiation detectors, wherein a surface or a number of the multiple radiation detectors is selected so that that similar signal amplitudes for all of the multiple radiation detectors result; and 
 a radiation barrier configured to absorb and/or reflect radiation of at least one wavelength range, said radiation barrier separating the multiple radiation sources arranged at respective different predetermined distances to the multiple radiation detectors from the multiple radiation detectors so that the radiations generated by the multiple radiation sources first pass through the measuring object by a path length before reaching the multiple radiation detectors.